It looks like New Zealand is going to be “pummeled” by cold, wintery weather over the next few days as school holidays get underway.
The country is set to experience some “gnarly” looking weather, with snow and severe gales thrown at some regions over the next few days, 1News meteorologist Dan Corbett said.
“I think old man winter's going to make up for some lost time. He's been cooling his wheel,” Corbett said.
He says parts of inland Southland towards central Otago will be hit with “blustery’ showers.
Alongside this, southern regions will see a “quick covering” of snow.
“That could accumulate, say, above 300 metres.
“So Queenstown, the hill suburbs of Dunedin, even place like Gore and Lumsden - watch out for the risk of some snow.”
The snow will be welcome news for those looking to hit the slopes. (Source: 1News)
Currently, Otago, south of the line from Queenstown to Alexandra and Mosgiel are under a heavy snow watch. So is Southland and Stewart Island.
The East Coast, Hawke’s Bay, and Auckland can expect to see wind, rain and severe gales.
“Some really sort of mucky weather over Saturday and Sunday, and probably into Monday as well," Corbett said.
Northland is under a severe thunderstorm watch, which is expected to bring "squally" showers and possible gusts of 110 km/h.
There is also a slight risk of tornadoes in the region.
Corbett said that after the next few days, the country could expect to see some “quieter weather” over the rest of the school holidays.
“It’s not going to be a complete deep freeze or a total washout either.
“Once we reach Wednesday, Thursday, we shut the door on Old Man Winter.”
He thinks that it should be back to sunny weather by then.
“Your kids will be out with their sunglasses, saying: ‘Hey, this is pretty good’.”
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